Stropping-machine.



R. M. WATSON.

STROPPING MACHINE.

APPLIOATION FILED 11116.26, 1911.

1,024,659. Patented Apr. 30, 1912.

COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH 60., WASHINGTON. D. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

RICHARD M. WATSON, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR TO GIBFORD SPECIALTY (10., OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, A CORPORATION OF MICHIGAN.

STRO'PPINGr-MACHINE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, RICHARD M. WATSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Detroit, in the county of Wayne, State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Stropping-Machines; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the characters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to stropping machines especially designed for stropping safety razor blades and consists in the construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully set forth and pointed out in the claims.

The object of this invention is to provide a stropping machine of the character de scribed, which in construct-ion shall be comparatively simple and inexpensive, and wherein provision is made for obtaining frictional contact with the under side of the strop for forcibly actuating the blade holder and insuring positiveness in the movement thereof, whereby obviating the cutting of the strop.

The invention further contemplates an arrangement whereby the working face of the strop is relieved from any rubbing friction in actuating the blade holder so as to obviate pushing the dressing on the face of the strop to the ends thereof.

The above object is attained by the device illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a stropping machine embodying my invention, showing said machine in operative position upon a strop, the terminals of which are broken away. Fig. 2 is a side elevation showing the strop in transverse section and the handle broken away. Fig. 3 is a plan view of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a sectional view transversely of the machine and longitudinally of the strop as on dotted line 44 of Fig. 2, showing the position of the parts Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed August 26, 1911.

Patented Apr. 30, 1912.

Serial No. 646,128.

when the machine is being moved along the strop toward the left. Fig. 5 is a similar view, showing the position of parts when the machine is being moved toward the right. Fig. 6 is an end elevation with the parts in the position shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 7 is a fragmentary view partly in section illustrating the manner of mounting the oscillatory bed upon the rock shaft which carries the sector gear which actuates the blade holder.

Referring to the characters of reference, 1 designates a suitable handle which at its upper end is rigidly connected to the cross bar 2. The terminals of said cross bar are bent upwardly at right angles to the body thereof forming the end pieces 3 of a trilateral frame. Between the upper ends of the end pieces 3 is journaled a shaft 4 on which is rigidly secured a blade holder 5 comprising opposed spring jaws, said holder being adapted to swing from side to side as the shaft is rotated in opposite directions. Fixed to the outer end of the shaft 4 which extends through one of the end pieces 3 is a small gear wheel 6. Crossing between the end pieces 3 of the frame, below the shaft of the blade holder and journaled at its ends in said end pieces, is a shaft 7. J ournaled upon said shaft between the ends of the frame is a rotatable sleeve 8. .Upon the projecting end of shaft 7 is a pinion 9 which meshes with the small gear wheel 6 on the shaft of the blade holder.

Extending between and journaled at its ends in the end pieces of the frame is a square rock shaft 10. One end of said shaft projects through one of the end pieces and fixed to said projecting end of said shaft is a sector gear 11 which meshes with the pinion 9. Mounted upon the rock shaft 10 is an oscillatory bed 12 having a curved upper face and right angle end pieces 13 which are slotted as at 14 and sit astride of the square rock shaft 10. This method of connecting the oscillatory bed with the rock shaft causes said shaft to rock as the bed oscillates, and at the same time allows said bed to have movement diametrically of said shaft, the slots 14 accommodating such movement. Rigidly secured to the shaft 10 and engaging with its free ends the under face of the bed 12 is a curved spring 15, the tension of which normally holds said bed distended but which will yield under pressure to allow said bed to be depressed away from the rotatable sleeve 8. It will be noted that the shafts 7 and 10 are in vertical alinement and that the axis on which the oscillatory bed swings is the center of sliaft 10.

A razor strep 16 is passed between the rotatable sleeve 8 and the face of the oscillatory bed and is of such thickness as to force said bed downwardly such distance as to place a tension upon the spring 15 whereby said bed is constantly forced upwardly toward the roller 8 which acts as an abutment therefor, the resistance offered by said roller causing the bed to be urged with tension against the under face of the strop by the action of the spring 15.

The frictional engagement of the oscillatory bed 12 with the under face of the strop will cause said bed to oscillate as the frame of the stropper is reciprocated longitudinally of the strop through the medium of the handle 1. This oscillatory movement of said bed will rock the square shaft 10 because of the fact that said shaft lies in the slots ll in the end pieces of said bed. The rocking of the shaft 10 will cause the sector gear 11 to swing and rotate the pinion 9 in opposite directions in reciprocal succession as said bed oscillates. This reciprocatory rotation of the pinion. 9 will impart a like movement to the gear 6 and cause a rotary reciprocation of the shaft 4C carrying the blade holder. The arrangement of the parts is such that as the frame is moved to the left along the strep the blade holder will be swung to the right so as to carry the edge of the blade 1'7, held between the aws of the blade holder, into contact with the surface of the strep. Because of the fact that the bed 12 is urged with some pressure against the rough under face of the strop sufficient friction will be created to not only impart a positive movement to the blade holder but also to urge the blade into contact with the dressed face of the strop with suflicient force to effect the desired abrasive action thereon. it will further be noted that the broad bearing against the under face of the strep afforded by the relatively long curve of the face of the bed will insure a responsive action in said bed immediately upon a change in the direction of move ment of the frame of the machine upon the strop, insuring a correspondingly responsive action in the blade holder to obviate the liability of cutting the strep through lost motion, or the failure of the operative parts to quickly reverse the blade holder upon a change in the direction of movement of the frame. The great leverage exerted on the shaft 10 by the bed 12 imparts a powerful movement to the blade holder and holds the blade forcibly against the face of the strop.

By yieldingly mounting the bed 12 upon shaft 10 as shown, provision is made for variations in the thickness of the strops, thus insuring proper frictional contact between the strep and the bed at all times. It will further be noted that by mounting the bed to move toward and from the axis of the shaft 10, independently of the oscillatory movement of said parts, the relation be tween the sector gear 11 and the pinion 9 remains unchanged insuring always a perfect driving engagement between said parts. It will also be noted that because of the fact that the sleeve 8 may rotate freely upon its shaft 7 there is no friction between the finished face of the strop and said sleeve, thus obviating the pushing of the dressing on the face of the strop to the opposite ends there of, a result incident to the use of a roller, common in the art, for actuating the blade holder, having a partial or limited rotation, and which for that reason must slide over the finished face of the strop for the greater portion of the length thereof when the stropper is actuated. By eliminating friction from the face of the strop heating to such an extent as to render it too soft for the desired action upon the blade is 0bviated.

Having thus fully set forth my invention, what 1 claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A stropping machine comprising a frame, a blade holder jonrnaled therein, a rock shaft also journaled in said frame below the blade holder, a bed mounted on said shaft and movable radially thereon, a roller abutment above saidbed, a strop lying be tween said bed and roller, means for urging the bed in the direction of said roller, and means for connecting said rock shaft with the blade holder to swing said holder as said bed oscillates.

2. A stropping machine comprising a frame, a blade holder journaled therein, a rock shaftjournaled in said frame below the blade holder, an oscillatory bed mounted upon said rock shaft to move radially thereon, a roller 'journaled in the frame above the bed, a strop interposed between said bed and roller, a spring interposed between the rock shaft and bed to urge said bed in the direction of said roller against the under face of said strop, a sector gear on the rock shaft, a pinion engaging said gear, and a gear connected with the blade holder engaging said pinion.

3. A stropping machine comprising a frame, a blade holder journaled therein, a squared rock shaft journaled in the frame below the blade holder, an oscillatory bed, said bed having end pieces provided with slots which receive said shaft and through the medium of which the shaft is rocked as the bed oscillates, a roller abutment above said bed, a strop interposed between said bed and roller, a spring engaging the bed to urge it against the under face of said strop, and means connecting the rock shaft with the blade holder to actuate said holder as 10 said shaft is rocked.

In testimony whereof, I sign this specification in the presence of two witnesses.

RICHARD M. WATSON.

Witnesses:

MARIE E. BRoEsAMLE, J. OTTO BAENZIGER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

